Gaya: Renaissance Repertory, established by Magadh region's cultural icon Sanjay Sahay, has launched a talent search programme to identify theatre artistes, groom them and make them the torch-bearers of a somewhat disappointing cultural scene of a township that till the first half of the last century, besides patronising the all-time great ghazal queen Late Begum Akhtar, legitimately boasted of the Gaya gharana of music with thumri exponent Dhelan Bai and other artistes.
Begum Akhtar, according to literary critic Masoom Aziz Kazmi frequented Gaya and spent considerable time here. She received patronage from the then financially sound and culture loving Gayawal Pandas and Nawabs, said Kazmi.
Sahay, in order to revive Gaya's old cultural traditions established his repertory that has several memorable performances at different festivals and other events across the country. The plays include Vinod, Satyagrah, Jaanch Partal and Tafteesh.
Sahay earlier produced a national award winning film Patang (1993) with Shabana Azmi, Om Puri, Shatrughan Sinha and Mohan Agashe in the main roles. Goutam Ghose directed the film based on Sahay's story. Sahay produced the first film that was entirely shot in Gaya.
Identifying the reluctance of girls to join the theatre group as the main challenge in his talent search programme, Sahay said it still being a conservative society, parents are reluctant to allow their daughters to perform on the stage, more so, if they were to enact bold scenes.
The dropout rate of women artistes is also very high, said Sahay. Not giving up, he said recently, he has spotted two girls with acting talents. The repertory chief said one of the girls is playing a tawaif (courtesan) in his new production Daroghaji.
The first show of Daroghaji was held on Saturday evening before a select group of culture lovers of the city, said Sahay. The feedback has been very positive and he would take into account the suggestions made by some enlightened members of the audience to make it more lively.
He has tried to make Daroghaji, the story of a lustful relationship between a corrupt SHO and a clever and scheming courtesan, something more than an adult comedy by introducing stree vimarsh (dialogue on women issues).
"The woman, contrary to the scheme of male chauvinists, should have full rights over her own body and not compelled to mortgage it to the man whether he be her husband, friend or master," said Sahay.
